Duane Ludwig believes that he has done much more for T.J. Dillashaw than Urijah Faber ever did.
Duane Ludwig still isn’t done talking about Urijah Faber and Team Alpha Male. Ludwig coached the team for a while, and didn’t get along with Faber while doing it. He did form a bond with many of the fighters on the team though, most notably T.J. Dillashaw. When Ludwig left, Dillashaw thought he could work with both of them separately. It didn’t take long for him to change his mind though, so he left to Colorado to work with Bang full-time.
As far as Ludwig’s concerned, it was clearly the right decision. He expressed his opinion on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani today (via MMA Fighting):
“In my eyes, I don’t think Faber ever did much for T.J. If you want to put on a loyalty stamp, I felt like I’ve done a lot more than Faber has. That’s for sure.”
…
“I’m always gonna back T.J.’s decision. He’s gotten a lot better under my guidance and the coaches out here in Colorado than he ever did in Sacramento. Other than under my guidance.”
Dillashaw just lost a super-close bout to Dominick Cruz on the weekend, relinquishing the UFC bantamweight title to him in the process. Faber has been angling for a fight with either man, but has made it clear that he’d prefer to fight his former teammate first. Ludwig called Faber out on that, stating that he just wants cash and doesn’t deserve the fight:
“I think Faber is calling for that fight because he wants to have another big-money payday,” Ludwig said. “He barely survived his last fight against a tough journeyman (Frankie Saenz). Now he wants to fight one of the No. 1 fighters in the world? Get the f*ck out of here.
“It’s just a payday call, that’s all it is. And I get it. It’s all about money. He’s at the end of his career. He wants another payday fight. I don’t know if he wants to step away soon or what it is. He probably should step away. It’s not really good to get hit in the head that much. It’s not good for your brain.”
It remains to be seen who Cruz defends his title against next, but a rematch between the two men might be in order.